Divide. Write the quotient in lowest terms. $3\dfrac{3}{8} \div 9 = $
Solution: First, let's rewrite $3\dfrac38$ and $9$ as fractions: $3\dfrac{3}{8} \div 9 =\dfrac{27}8 \div \dfrac91$ [How do we write a mixed number as a fraction?] Dividing by a fraction is the same as multiplying by the reciprocal of the fraction. The reciprocal of $\dfrac91$ is $\dfrac19$. Now, we can rewrite our expression as a multiplication problem: $\dfrac{27}8 \div \dfrac91=\dfrac{27}8\times\dfrac19$ $=\dfrac{27\times 1}{8 \times 9}$ $=\dfrac{ \stackrel{3}{\cancel{27}} \times~ 1 }{ 8\times\underset{1}{\cancel{9}}} $ $=\dfrac{3 \times 1}{8 \times 1}$ $=\dfrac{3}{8}$